Squid Game - 3 Core Life Lessons

attitude stories winning Oct 30, 2021

My wife and I recently binge watched all 9 episodes of Squid Games over the period of a week. We were introduced to it by our son and daughter-in-law, when we were visiting them in Boston.

The Squid Games offers three choices that I want to share with you that can shape your life and those around you. These are Take Aways that I encourage you to look out for and to use in life and leadership. These are some of redeeming elements from watching the series – to help you and me live with greater focus and passion – and greater success. I’ll do my best to not share any spoilers, but if I do – I will try to warn you first.

Here are the lessons:

#1 Practice Empathy

This Squid Games showed me the side of what life looks like when someone is down and out. It’s a biopic of our world in the midst of covid, and unrest. Each of the Green track suited characters in Squid Games (the players), including maybe even the Pink suited PlayStation / StormTrooper like workers...

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Football Legends on Leadership

attitude leadership winning Sep 25, 2021

One of my favorite movie scenes is this clip from the movie Rudy.  I love how the players and fans rally to influence the coach to put Rudy in the game.  And I love how he leads with heart and tenacity.  It's how we should all live.

If you are a fan of leadership, then you ought to be a fan of football. Seriously!  While football may just be a game to most, there are many parallels to what it takes to live and lead effectively at home and in business;  especially college or playoff football. Football at that level reflects all the critical elements of leadership.  Consider you can find many of John Maxwell's 21 Laws of Leadership exemplified in a top 20 or playoff football team.  You'll see the law of the lid, the law of momentum, the law of teamwork, and so many more.

For many, the best part of football on the calendar is not just the Super Bowl, but college bowl games and the playoffs for the teams trying to go...

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What it Really Takes to Win

We just finished an amazing mastermind discussion on the book W1NNING, by Tim Grover. Grover was the personal coach for Michael Jordon, Kobe Bryant, and other notables -- not just in sports but in life.

Grover shares 13 principles for Winning based on the stories of MJ, Kobe, his own journey and many others. But before you dive into the book try this little exercise.

Grover suggests early-on answering this one question.

What does winning mean to you?

Seriously. What does winning mean? You won't be able to fully value this book (or any discussions) until you do. Take time to answer that question -- consider it a prerequisite. But, there's one caveat. 

You can only pick only one word for your definition.  

That's right - just one word. 

It makes it a little harder, doesn't it? But go ahead, give it a try. 

Sure the dictionary will tell you winning is "gaining, resulting in, or relating to victory in a...

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Are You Living Like a Champion?

What if you lived life like you were training for the Olympics? What would you do different? 

That’s the question I asked myself that stopped me in my tracks.

I realized I wasn’t playing full out. Yes, there are days I’m giving everything I have – and I’m leaving it out on the field wherever I am present, but there are many days that I just don’t’ have it. There are days I just don’t give it my best and I fail to FOCUS.

Why?

It’s not because of a lack of intent. I want to play full out. My aspirations are there. The reason why I don’t FINISH is because I can get out of balance.

The balance revelation drew my attention to something called the Eight Dimensions of Wellness. Maybe you have heard of them.  Here's a hokie graphic that illustrates them.  (thanks Adobe Stock)

Here are the 8 in no particular order. Each of them have an equal weight of importance and value.

  1. Occupational
  2. Social
  3. Emotional
  4. ...
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5 Secrets to the Art of Winning

The art of winning is something almost everyone of us would love to know and understand. It doesn't matter your gender, your age, your culture, or your position.  We all want to know what it takes to win. Surprisingly the game of football can reveal some of these secrets, but you don't have to be a fan of football to benefit from the knowledge.

In this blog, I share with you 5 takeaways on the Art of Winning.  These are 5 Principles, while borrowed from a story related to the game of football, are precepts any one of us can learn to apply in our life going forward.  They are difference makers for teams, businesses, organizations, schools, and more.

Introduction

The 5 Principles come from my  takeaways from a documentary about a forgotten era when the NFL faced a real challenge.  The documentary is an ESPN 30 for 30 film on the 1987 NFL Replacement Players.  It chronicles the NFL strike ridden season, that challenged the league, fans,...

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